by Cliff Deane
The ever present SSgt. Jones was also up and had retrieved a tray of muffins from the bakery, and was pouring fresh coffee.
“Jonesy,” asked Levi, don’t you ever sleep?”
“Oh, yes sir, I have a cot in the back section of the tent. Dang, sir, I would not like for you to have to make important decisions without fresh coffee and warm muffins; why, a lack of coffee and muffins might cause us to lose the whole danged war; besides, I did abscond with a muffin for myself, I hope you don’t mind, sir.”
Levi smiled at SSgt Jones, who was, without question as much the Sgt. Majors right arm as was the Sgt. Major the same for Levi. SSgt Jones did more than just provide Java and muffins; he ran the TOC’s administration with an iron will. Yeah, muffins my ass, thought Levi.
“Thanks, Jonesy, I guess that I won’t fly off the handle about the absconded muffin this time, but don’t you let it happen again. Once is enough.” Everyone in the TOC broke up in laughter because they all knew two things; Jonesy always scarfed up a muffin, and that Levi knew the practice had started with the first tin of muffins made by the baker.
Smiling broadly, Jonesy said, “Oh, no sir, I wouldn’t think of it.”
As Levi looked around at those on duty, he noticed a muffin wrapper at every duty soldier’s position; Levi was proud of his command, damned proud.
When the others arrived, Levi called the meeting to order, and the Patrol Leader made his report. He finished it by saying, “Sir, these guys are morons, they are fortifying the grounds of the White House all right, but they have not even considered that the surrounding buildings all offer perfect sniper positions. We could rain down some serious shit on these jerks.”
“And so we shall. Thank you Sergeant; gentlemen, are there any additional questions for the Sergeant?”
Only Gus spoke up and told the Sergeant that he had given an excellent briefing.
The Sergeant replied, “Thank you, sir. We don’t just train hard for combat, we train hard on Intel reports, too.”
Everyone chuckled, and Levi dismissed the Sergeant to get some sleep.
Gus said, “Well, I guess we will soon have a good idea of the enemy numbers. Boss, you were dead on; they have gone defensive. I suggest we covertly sweep the surrounding buildings for explosive traps before taking up positions.
Sir, I also recommend we contact Leon and have him move his force through DC, destroying Mosques and Command and Control Centers as his Task Force finds a new bivouac and HQ.
Leon and his Staff should come here for a planning session to decide on finishing this bunch, once and for all.
Following the destruction of this Caliphate Force, we should begin preparations to engage the reinforcement column while they are struggling with the highway blockages.
Everyone agreed with the plan, and a messenger was sent to Leon to inform him of the new mission.
Captain Page asked why we didn’t just use the radio to inform Lt. Colonel Pickett.
“Well, son,” said Gus, I’m just not really comfortable with that since we have no idea of the enemy’s capability to intercept radio communication. There is also no rush because they have us right where we want ‘em.
I know, I know, I’m a funny man, I’ll be here all week.”
◎
17 May 1100
Camp TFP
S of DC
“Well, sir, you were dead right, those chicken shits are runnin’ for cover. What are your orders, sir?”
Lt. Colonel Pickett said, “1st Sergeant, gather the staff for a short briefing, and then start preparing for a search and destroy. Ya’ know, Top, I wish we had kept a running total of destroyed Churches, make a note to do that when we take the next town.”
“Yes, sir,” smiled the Top Sergeant, “we’ll sure do it. If you’ll excuse me, sir, I’d better get started.”
“Roger that, Top, after the staff meeting, you and I’ll be heading to the General’s HQ, please make sure we have four Humvees and a security squad.”
“Gotcha, sir.”
◎
18 May 1415
Camp TFL
NW of DC
Lt. Colonel Pickett, his 1st. Sgt and escort pulled into Task Force Levins encampment at 1415 hours. While the Security Force topped off the fuel and had a late lunch, the TF Pickett leaders were escorted to the TOC. The Brain Trust of both Task Forces now met to hear the General’s guidance for the upcoming battle.
General Levins appeared more somber than usual as he began to relate how he wanted the engagement to go.
“Gentlemen, we have an opportunity here to eliminate the Caliphate’s hold on DC. As you know, they have gone to ground into an apparently flawed defensive posture. A posture that may enable us to, as the Patrol Leader said, rain down some serious shit on them. Well, I am just not thoroughly comfortable with such a sitting duck that still has some sharp teeth.
I asked myself; if I was in command of the Caliphate Force, what would I do to minimize the danger of an enemy force occupying the surrounding buildings. I believe that I would place a portion of my forces in those very buildings to ambush anyone doing exactly what we want to do.
So, I want Wasp flyovers every hour beginning at 2000. Let’s just see if they plan to keep us out. Our Wasps must also seek out any heavy weapons, i.e., mortars and heavy machine guns. They must be the initial targets for the snipers and grenadiers.
If the hostiles are occupying these buildings, we need a plan to quietly take them away from the enemy so we can proceed with our mission. Leon, give me a workable plan by 0800 tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Next item; once we have identified the necessary buildings, we commit to maximum effort to destroy all Caliphate Forces while saving the White House, if possible.
Our third and fourth-floor fire teams will consist of, at a minimum, one Sniper, one SAW, one automatic grenade launcher, and one rear security guard. Ground floor Reaction Forces will consist of no less than eight men to monitor each neighboring building’s exits to effectively engage any hostiles emerging to attack our upper-floor firing points.
Let’s keep these JJs off our shooters.”
Gus interrupted, asking, “JJs, sir, what the hell are JJs.”
Levi smiled and said, “JJs are Jihad Johnnies, I just made that up, whadaya think?”
Everyone around the table chuckled and liked the nickname for these Islamists, so JJs they became.
I envision occupying twelve buildings, each with four teams of third and fourth-floor shooters. A sixty-man Reaction Force, made up of Fire Teams will cover each exit of buildings not occupied by our forces and a three-man fire team with SAW and Grenadier on the ground floor of each ROA occupied building to provide defensive rear security.
This leaves us with roughly forty men securing our HQ.
Gentlemen, I know I may be being a bit repetitive here, but I want to drive home the necessary requirements as I see them.
Once we have eliminated all resistance around the perimeter, we will pause the assault for thirty minutes to allow their Head Shed crew to escape through the tunnels.”
“Sir?” asked Leon, “did you say pause to let them escape? Why would we do that?”
Gus asked if he could answer those questions. He said, “Yes, Colonel, you heard the man, and it is the right thing to do. Reason number one; we suspect there are numerous escape tunnels under the White House, and the top brass would probably be gone before we have paused, anyway.
Reason two; we would like to avoid the destruction of the White House which contains many treasures of great historical importance. It is our hope that these treasures may be preserved to one day converting the White House into a museum.
Number three; by following the guidance on Sun Tzu’s The Art of War we often leave an exit for a possible enemy retreat because desperate men fight much harder and we, my friends, are a long way from the final battle.
In this case, the value of allowing the leadership to escape is that our fame and
fierceness will be spread to other Caliphate cities. These stories will grow with each telling; filling our enemy with dread and fear.
I will loan my copy of The Art of War to you, and I want it back at tomorrow’s morning brief.”
“Yes, sir, thank you, sir.”
The remainder of the day passed without further incident, until 1730, when two claymore mines were detonated, and gunfire erupted from around the SE perimeter. Each trooper had a place to be, and a job to do during an attack.
Small arms fire entered the perimeter from a small probing attack of Caliphate soldiers.
Once the enemy was physically located; fire from the perimeter was reduced to sniper fire as the southern and eastern Reaction Forces began flanking moves on the enemy positions. The northern Reaction Force made their way behind the attackers to ensure that this small group of Islamists did not escape to report the location of TFL. Once the RF’s were in position, all firing from the perimeter line ceased to avoid what the military calls Blue on Blue casualties or friendly fire.
Once the perimeter fire halted, the RFs began to close the trap. For several minutes the only sounds were the birds which had returned to their songs following the initial firing.
The birdsong stopped when the air was suddenly filled with renewed weapons fire.
The engagement was over in seconds as eleven JJs lay dead, and one with moderate wounds in his left leg and shoulder. Two ROA troopers lay dead, and one wounded.
Immediate first aid was given to the ROA Trooper who suffered a through and through to his right calf.
The surviving Caliphate soldier was a sergeant; Levi ordered his wounds attended to and made immediately ready for questioning.
In the infirmary, Levi and Gus questioned the sergeant concerning his mission, troop assignments, and most importantly; did the Caliphate leadership know the staging areas for the coming ROA assault?
The sergeant had lost a lot of blood, and needed no enhanced interrogation to tell what he knew; he was leading a scouting patrol when two of his men tripped the claymores. At that point, the only thing to do was fight. He knew nothing of troop assignments other than they were fortifying the area around Ruhullah’s Majid’s Palace.
Before the sergeant could answer further his heart failed from his initial blood loss.
Personal effects were gathered from the two dead troopers for a return to Defiance where they would be interred in the ROA Military Cemetery. The bodies however would be buried side by side where they fell.
An emergency meeting was called by Levi to discuss what the Task Forces should do.
Once Levi raised his hand for silence he said, “Please do not hesitate if you disagree with my assessment of what just happened. As I see it, a Caliphate patrol stumbled into our minefield. According to the sergeant, he had no idea we were here. There was no radio with the patrol, so I have decided to believe him. We learned nothing new on troop movements. Based on this information I see no reason to move our TF from here when such a movement could be observed.
So, what have I missed?”
The Sgt. Major said, “We did learn one golden nugget that may come in handy at some point down the road. We now know the name of the Religious Leader in DC, Ruhullah Majid. I admit it’s not much, but let’s file it away in the hope that it will prove to be of some use.”
Levi smiled at his Sgt. Major and said, Oh, yes that’s an excellent point. Thank you, Bradley, good thinking.”
From an analysis perspective, everyone was in agreement with Levi’s assessment. It was decided to continue operations, as planned.
◎
20 May 0455
White House
DC
The General knocked on Ruhullah Majid’s door and waited for his permission to enter which came almost immediately. In his hand, he held the three pieces of a seemingly broken Wasp.
Holding the pieces for Majid to see, the General explained the use of the drone, and that it was the spy which located the Caliphate emplacements.
Majid, was not overly impressed by what he saw as a broken toy, and said, “General, you interrupt my prayer to Allah to show me this toy? How could such a toy have identified our troops hidden in the surrounding buildings? I hope you have something more important to tell me.
The General was about to reply as Sniper fire and what he thought was mortar fire began to rain down on the fortifications surrounding the Ruhullah’s Palace.
“Majid, we are under attack, come with me now, we must get you to safety. We will use the north tunnel where we have a vehicle waiting for our withdrawal to Cleveland.”
“But, what of our defenses; will they not hold?”
“No, my friend, we did not have sufficient time to complete the fortifications or to occupy the surrounding buildings. We have just enough time to get you to safety, now, come with me.”
The Ruhullah scrambled to his feet and leaving his prayer rug and the broken toy, allowed the General’s Security Team to guide him to the tunnel and safety.
The sound of gunfire accompanied by the whump of detonating 40 mm grenades continued to rake the enemy positions with devastating results and led to white flags flying from the few surviving Caliphate defenders.
Of nearly four hundred Caliphate soldiers, only twenty survived the battle, after trial by Military Tribunal the findings were that since the survivors were all U.S. citizens, they were to be hung for treason.
Privately, it did not go unnoticed by the Tribunal members that members of the ROA might well be considered just as treasonous to the defunct United States government.
◎◎◎
Chapter 14
The Die is cast…
20 May 0700
1600 Penn. Ave.
DC
Sergeants Carter and Simms each led a squad of Infantry onto the White House grounds to recon the perimeter. What the scouts found amazed them; there were no heavy weapons, only small arms of varying calibers. Most were AKs, but semi-auto ARs were also in service.
The remaining forces entered the perimeter and began securing the entire ring while the two scouting squads entered an underground parking area and what they saw was more than depressing. Rather than cars, this area held the skeletal remains of thousands of human beings. As the men made their way among the bones, the troopers began to understand what they were seeing. Every head had been severed, but even more disturbing were the remnants of clothing; these were Priests, Nuns, Pastors, their wives, and children; possibly even entire congregations captured while in Church.
These Religious Leaders and their families were brought here to be murdered by decapitation, and then simply tossed into an ever expanding pile that over the course of fourteen months became dark, unbleached bones.
Now a new and fearsome rage began to burn its way into the souls of these men who, only now fully realized what an Islamic Caliphate meant to Christianity.
There could be no safe haven for the losers of this fight. Either Christianity or Islam must cease to exist.
Yes, the fate of the Middle Eastern Coptic Christians had come to America.
After inspecting this Ossuary, Levi ordered that every member of the ROA Military view this horror.
Inside the White House, paintings were ripped from the walls and cut into small pieces; statuary was broken into shards on the floor. Anything of historical value was utterly destroyed.
SSgt Simms was the first to enter the Oval Office and was surprised to find a disassembled Wasp lying on top of a prayer rug. He picked them up to give to the Sgt. Major.
The only portion of the White House that wasn’t in complete shambles was the Oval Office area. Here, paintings and statuary had been removed and in their place were hung the flags of Muslim nations hung alongside portraits of Mecca and Medina and various Jihadist leaders. The symbols of Islam dominated the West Wing.
Levi considered burning the building down but relented and ordered that anything of Islamic culture was to be removed and burned. Beyond that he o
rdered the building locked in the hope that, at some future time, something of America’s past could be salvaged.
Alone in the Oval Office, Levi wept.
A short time later Levi and Gus sat together in the Oval Office and discussed future campaigns against this horror called the Caliphate.
“Levi,” said Gus, “I can only imagine what they have done to the Declaration of Independence.”
Levi said, “I know exactly what we will find, but what breaks my heart is finding more bones of our murdered Clergy and their families in every city and town controlled by these bastards. It is obvious, beyond a doubt that their goal is to stamp out every religion but Islam. I am now, more than ever convinced that this is not a war to destroy the Caliphate Army; this is a war of eradication. I have no doubt that it comes down to, they kill us, or we kill them; all of them.”
Now Gus sat in silence for some time before raising his head and looking into Levi’s eyes saying, “I know…but, Levi, you know we cannot set the goal of killing every last Muslim. I admit I don’t know the answer to end this scourge, but we have to find a way because I will not be a part of the mass murder of innocents. I know, how do we discern who is an innocent? I do not know the answer, yet, but we must find it. You with me, brother?”
After another long moment, Levi added, “Yes, of course, I am, I was just venting, but at this moment in time if I could wish them out of existence, I believe I might do it. Then I realize that it’s not the people but the ideology of Islam.
Thank you, Gus, please organize any mopping up efforts, no, wait, the first thing I want you to do is to find the tunnel this Majid took, and then send out a patrol to track him down. I want him standing in front of me, in chains, while I remind him of his crimes, and seal his fate. Find him, Gus, find him! He is not an innocent.”
